STAT: The EKG is only a start. Apple wants to seize the market for patient monitoring

Below is an exerpt from a STAT article quoting NHC’s Chief Executive Officer Marc Boutin. Read the full article.

“The commercialization of tools such as the EKG app will significantly increase the flow of biometric data that could be used to develop more effective treatments for people with chronic illness, a primary driver of cost in the U.S. health care system.

Users can take an EKG by holding their finger on an electrode built into the side of the watch, generating a waveform within 30 seconds that can flag a common arrhythmia known as atrial fibrillation, which can lead to strokes and other problems.

‘It allows us to capture data in real-world settings that can be translated into evidence and help make better decisions when we design and deliver care,’ said Marc Boutin, chief executive of the National Health Council, an advocacy group for people with chronic diseases. ‘We’re excited to see this moving along.’

Like its technology rivals, Apple must also contend with thorny questions about data privacy and security, and whether data collected via Apple Watches could infuse bias based on users who skew wealthy and white.

‘It would be a huge mistake to think that the data you collect from this would be applicable to everybody,’ Boutin said. ‘What you want to do is collect the data and look at the different subpopulations contributing their data and then do the research on what kind of conclusions you can draw.'”

Read the full article.